An oxymoron is a figure of speech where two words of opposed or contradictory meaning are used together to create emphasis. While some oxymorons are
created by accident
– such as “small crowd” – sometimes they are used deliberately to draw attention to something or to create drama for the reader or listener.
Is Alone in a Crowd an oxymoron?
An oxymoron is a figure of speech that involves two words (or short phrases) that appear to contradict each other. … We can see how this works if we look at the phrase “alone in a crowd.” Image: Scott Smitelli. A “crowd” is a large group, so you can't actually be alone while you're in the middle of one.
What is oxymoron and give 5 examples?
10 Examples of Common Oxymorons
“
Small crowd” “Old news
” “Open secret” “Living dead” “Deafening silence”
What is an example of an oxymoron?
An oxymoron is a
self-contradicting word or group of words
(as in Shakespeare's line from Romeo and Juliet, “Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate!”). A paradox is a statement or argument that seems to be contradictory or to go against common sense, but that is yet perhaps still true—for example, “less is more.”
Is quiet/loud an oxymoron?
The most common type of oxymoron is an adjective followed by a noun. One oxymoron example is “
deafening silence
,” which describes a silence that is so overpowering it almost feels deafening, or extremely loud—just as an actual sound would.
Can a person be an oxymoron?
The similarity of “oxymoron” to “moron” which is clearly a person, is clever.
Yes
. If someone is really, really into Oxi-Clean, and keeps recommending it in situations where it doesn't make sense, you might call that person an Oxi-Moron.
Is awfully nice an oxymoron?
My dictionary defines today's oxymoron as a “combination of contradictory or incongruous words.” … If you stop to think about it, two of our more common oxymorons are “terribly nice” and “awfully good.”
Never use
“awfully good” when praising someone's cooking, and never use “terribly nice” to describe a kiss.
How do you identify a paradox?
- Here are the rules: Ignore all rules.
- The second sentence is false. The first sentence is true.
- I only message those who do not message.
Is misshapen chaos an oxymoron?
Misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms! Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, … For instance, “loving hate,” “heavy lightness,” “feather of lead,” “bright smoke,” “cold fire,” and “sick health” are all
oxymoron
examples.
What is an example of a hyperbole?
Hyperbole is a figure of speech. For example:
“There's enough food in the cupboard to feed an entire army!
” In this example, the speaker doesn't literally mean that there's enough food in the cupboard to feed the hundreds of people in the army.
What is difference between oxymoron and paradox?
Although both a paradox and an oxymoron involve
contradictions
, they have an important difference. A paradox is a rhetorical device or a self-contradictory statement that can actually be true. While an oxymoron is a figure of speech that pairs two opposing words.
What is the difference between irony and oxymoron?
Irony is a literary device that relies on the difference
between expectation and outcome
. An oxymoron is a figure of speech where two words of opposite meaning are used together.
Is Sweet Sorrow an oxymoron?
“Kill thee with much cherishing” indicates that her love will end with his death, and “sweet sorrow” is
an oxymoron describing a lovely sadness
. The concept of killing someone with love is a common theme in Romeo and Juliet, echoed in its many oxymorons.
Why does Juliet use so many oxymorons?
These oxymorons serve to
illustrate Juliet's inner conflict
. She is madly in love with Romeo, but she is angry and shocked that he killed someone whom she cares about. She has no notion of the context of the fight, either (that Romeo killed Tybalt to avenge Mercutio), so confusion also plays a part in her reaction.
What is an example of a paradox?
An example of a paradox is
“Waking is dreaming”
. A paradox is a figure of speech in which a statement appears to contradict itself. This type of statement can be described as paradoxical. A compressed paradox comprised of just a few words is called an oxymoron.
What's the opposite of an oxymoron?
Are you looking for pleonasm? The opposite of oxymoron would be two words that are perfectly compatible with each other, not identical. Etymologically speaking, the opposite would be
a moroxyon
.
